Thursday, December 9, 2010

Seattle Union Gospel Mission


"The entire city would mourn the loss of the Union Gospel Mission." -Tim Burgess, Seattle City Councilmember



The Seattle Union Gospel Mission's mission statement is, "To serve, rescue, and transform those in greatest need through the grace of Jesus Christ." And that is exactly what they have been doing for the past 78 years. We had the privilege to serve dinner at the Men's Shelter last week and it was my favorite experience thus far. I sat next to a gentleman who had recently graduated from their year long addiction recovery program, New Creations. Immediately after I greeted him, he asked me with a big grin, "So what do you love about the Lord?" As with a slew of others that have been through the program, God's sovereign plan of salvation through grace is tangible in his life.

The Men's Shelter is located in the Pioneer Square district, which I described here. Each night, over 200 otherwise homeless men seek refuge there in the form of dinner, Word, and rest. They also offer a nightly Spanish chapel. I had a great conversation with a resident in which he related that over half of the Hispanic men that attend do not speak English well enough to get by. Praise God for his providence in giving us an apartment a mere four blocks from the Men's Shelter. I'm anxious to begin serving there regularly and investing in this important work.

Currently, the UGM's chapel is the only "church" in the entire Pioneer Square district. Please pray with us that God would change that by giving DCC a meeting space for the new year in Pioneer Square.

Partnering with you,
Christy

1 comment:

  1. Thanks for posting so consistently! I do love reading and keeping up with you guys.

    Christy, I was listening to music on shuffle the other day at work. It was mostly Christmas music when de repente, I heard, "...deep in the heart of Texas." That's right, the Texas song was playing! I had NEVER heard it besides when we sang it on DTS..."the coyotes wail, along the trail, [clap clap clap clap], deep in the heart of Texas...!" So funny. Reminded me of you!

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